Adjustable air-flow dryer



March 11, 1958 Filed July 3, 1956 FIG.|

J. J. VERWAYEN ET AL 2,825,979

ADJUSTABLE AIR-FLOW DRYER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 lNVE/VTORS. John J. Verwoyen Edward F. Monogue ATTORNEY I March 19.58 J.J. VERWAYEN ETAL 2,825,979

ADJUSTABLE AIR-FLOW DRYER Filed July 5, 1956 ZSheets-Sheet 2 FIG.4

FIG.5

llvl/lvrofisx John J.Verwoyen Edward EMonogue ATTORNEY United States Patent ADJUSTABLE AIR-FLOW DRYER John J. Verwayen, Waldwick, and Edward F. Manogue, Ridgefield, N. J.

Application July 3, 1956, Serial No. 595,646

Claims. (Cl. 34-114) This invention relates to a device for drying paper on a paper making machine and more particularly to a longitudinal dryer having a plurality of selectively adjustable apertures.

In drying a continuous ribbon of paper which may be many feet wide through the dryer section of a conventional paper making machine, it often happens that the degree of drying varies across the Width of the continuous ribbon of paper. This vibration in the percentage of moisture in the paper ribbon across the width thereof is quite common in paper dried in steam heated rollers.

In the conventional drying of a wet ribbon of newly made paper in the dryer section of a paper making ma-- chine, themoving ribbon is passed substantially around the circumference of successive rotating rolls said rolls being spaced in a double row, i. e. a top row and a bottom row thereby assuring heating and thus the drying of both surfaces of the paper.

To assist this drying operation, longitudinal hot-air dryer pipes each having a plurality of apertures are disposed between consecutive top row rolls and consecutive bottom row rolls. These hot-air dryers have a plurality of apertures disposed in two rows, each row of which is directed toward the paper disposed on an adjacent roll. Thus in the conventional hot-air dryer there is no provision of adjustment of the aperture openings. Accordingly the conventional hot-air dryer exerts a uniform drying action along its entire longitudinal dimension.

It is an object of this invention to provide a hot-air dryer having selectively adjustable apertures throughout its longitudinal dimension.

It is another object of this invention to provide a hot-air dryer capable of drying selected sections of a moving paper ribbon or web disposed adjacent thereto.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following descriptive disclosure taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. l is a transverse section taken through the longitudinal hot-air dryer and on line 1-1 of Fig. 5,

Fig. 2 is an end view the dryer showing a horizontally disposed handle bar and a dial indicator.

Fig. 3 is a view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 and showing the manner of securing the handle bar to the externally disposed rotatable plural slot apertured pipe and showing also the manner of supporting the inner hot-air conducting pipe at the end thereof,

Fig. 4 is a top view of a slotted fiat plate prior to being rolled into the externally disposed slot apertured rotatable pipe of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a side view of the invention showing the externally disposed slotted pipe functioning as a rotatable sleeve with the slots thereof in selective registry with the apertures of the inner pipe and Fig. 6 is an end view of a conventional dryer section of a paper making machine showing the manner of disposing dryer rolls in two rows and showing further a ribbon of paper disposed around said rolls and showing still further the manner of conducting hot-air by this dryer invention to the paper ribbon disposed adjacent thereto. Turning to the drawing and particularly to Fig. 3 this invention comprises a fixed or stationary horizontally disposed inner cylindrical tubular conduit 10 having a divergent pair of rows of spaced-apart circular apertures 11, each row of said circular apertures being disposed below the horizontal center line of said conduit and in a respective bottom quadrant section of said conduit.

A plurality of suitable and angularly disposed tubes 12 are welded about each aperture 11, the axis of the tubes 12 being directed to the axis of conduit 10. The angle at which the tubes are disposed relative to the vertical plane is preferably about 70, so that the angle between two opposed tubes 12 is about 140. The angle 140 is preferred because the hot-air issuing from two opposed tubes 12 (Fig. 6) will impinge upon the respective paper webs 12X disposed on the respective dryer rolls 12Y disposed adjacent the dryer apparatus of this invention.

As shown in Fig. 3, an outer rotatable sleeve 13 having a pair of rows of rectangular slots 14 is provided, said slots being adapted to engage respective apertures 11 of said conduit 10.

As shown in Figs. 4 and 5 the slots are of suitable length to engage rotatably selective groups of apertures 11 of each of the rows of apertures 11. The width of the slots 14 are equal to the diameter of apertures 11 over which the slots slide, cutting off selective apertures 11 from hot-air issuing therefrom. The slots are stamped out of a strip of sheet metal and are disposed in a suitable undulation or curve so that selectivity of closure of groups of apertures 11 is obtainable.

After the slots 14 have been punched into the sheet metal, it is rolled into the tubular sleeve 13 and suitably disposed in snug relationship over inner conduit 10.

The conduit 10 (Fig. 3) is provided at its front end with a pair of spaced-apart end walls 15 and 16, each having a suitable aperture centrally disposed therein. The end walls 15 and 16 are welded to a cylindrical collar 17 which is welded inside conduit 10 at the end thereof.

A horizontally disposed support rod 18 is passed through the respective apertures of end wall 16 and 15 thereby supporting the weight of the conduit 10 at the front end.

The rear end of conduit 10 (Fig. 5) is supported by a tubular hub 19, wherein a respective hub projects into a respective rear end Wall of conduit 10.

The hot-air enters conduit 10 from hub 19 and passes therethrough toward the front end wall 15. In passing toward end wall 15 the hot-air passes selectively through selective lead tubes 12 and upon paper web 12X effecting a selective drying of the web 12X.

As shown in Fig. 1, the top of tubes 12 is cut at a suitable slope or angle, which slope is disposed toward hub 19, so that as the hot-air travels end wall 15 some of it is directed into the tube 12 because of said suitable slope.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the front of the sleeve 13 is provided with a fixed circular head plate 20 fixed into the sleeve 13 as by welding. The plate 20 is provided with a scale plate 21 to facilitate the reading of the closure of apertures 11 by slots 14. The plate 20 is provided with an aperture through which rod 18 passes.

A handle bar 21X is horizontally disposed and secured to end plate 20 preferably by a plurality of metal screws 22. Clearly turning of handle bar 21X to the right turns the sleeve 13 to the right and turning of bar 21X to the left or counterclockwise turns the sleeve counterclockwise.

A pointer 23 is secured to rod 18 by nut 24 in a vertical position so as to register with indicia on the dial plate 21.

The support rod 18 is itself supported by a bracket 25 fixed to the end of rod 18 by a pair of co-acting nuts 26.

As shown in Fig. 5, turning or rotation of sleeve 13 opens or closes selectively the two rows of apertures" 11 by the overlying two rows of slots 14-. Thus all the apertures toward one end, or both ends of the conduit may be closed or open at the will of the operator depending upon the relative sizes of the slots and aperture and upon the closure relationship therebetween. Also the end apertures may be closed and only the middle apertures 11 opened to dry a paper web 12X in its middle section.

This invention therefore permits selective drying of a moving paper web 12X at selective points across the webs width.

This invention has been illustrated by one embodiment but other embodiments using the principle of a rotating slotted sleeve over a fixed apertured co-actiug inner conduit will now become apparent to those skilled in the art, but all such equivalents of this invention are intended to'be' covered by the claims herein.

We claim:

1. A device for drying a moist moving web of paper disposed about a plurality of dryer rolls of a paper making machine comprising an inner fixed horizontally disposed cylindrical tubular conduit member having an inlet at one end for conducting hot-air and having at least one linear row of circular apertures in the bottom half of the conduit, said apertures being disposed to conduct hot-air substantially perpendicularly upon an adjacent section of said" web, a rotatable outer cylindrical sleeve member disposed in abutting relationship over said inner member and having at least one curvilinear row of rectangular slots, said row of apertures and said row of slots each extending substantially the length of the inner member and of the outer member respectively, said slots being so disposed relative to said apertures as to be capable upon rotation of said sleeve to selectively close selected groups of said apertures to respectively exclude passage of hotair through said selected apertures, and means secured to said rotatable sleeve for selective rotation of said sleeve, whereby drying of said moving web at selected areas across its width is accomplished.

2. The device of claim 1 comprising two opposed rows of apertures, each row being disposed in a respective lower quadrant of said fixed cylindrical conduit, said sleeve having a. pair of opposed curvilinear rows of suitably proportioned slots adapted to co-act with and selectively close and open said circular apertures whereby selective drying of two selected portions of the web across its width is effected simulatneously.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the means for rotating the sleeve is a handle bar'secured to an end thereof.

4. The device of claim 3 comprising a plurality of cylindrical tubes each having an air inlet end and at the other end secured interiorly of said fixed conduit and at a suitable angle about each of said apertures, the axis of the tubes of each row of apertures being disposed to ward the axis of the fixed conduit.

5. The device of claim 4 wherein the air inlet end of each of said tubes is beveled and disposed into the current of moving hot-air.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 689,739 Morill. Dec. 24, 1901 1,578,298- Walsh Mar. 30, 1926 1,605,856 Serva Nov. 2, 1926 1,660,640 Asten Feb. 28, 1928 1,737,015 Merrill Nov. 26, 1929 FOREIGN PATENTS 184,557 Great Britain Aug. 11, 1922 

